


Wait Up

by Kalloway



Category: Gundam SEED
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canonical Character Death, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-31
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-04-29 02:52:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5113466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalloway/pseuds/Kalloway
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rusty goes along with Athrun to visit the cemetery in the PLANTs.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wait Up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Moon_Blitz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moon_Blitz/gifts).



"Wait up, you guys!"

Rusty paused and waved his cane at Yzak and Dearka, who were ambling through the cemetery a bit faster than he could manage. Despite the best efforts of every medical professional who got their hands on him - and over the years that had gotten to be a decent number - he was always going to walk with a decent limp. But it was a small price to pay for being alive. Limping, never being able to return to a mobile suit...

Athrun had his arms full of flowers and was trailing a bit. Rusty wasn't sure if there was another grave he was looking for; he didn't want to think about all the people he'd known from ZAFT who were now memorialized here. This was Athrun's idea - Athrun could still do so much more, even after everything. 

Someone had thought it funny to give them Yzak and Dearka as bodyguards. But at least they were almost in good spirits about it. It was good to see them - Rusty had known they'd survived but never quite figured out what to say in a message. Everything was so busy anyway...

"We're not going to leave you behind," Dearka replied as he dropped back a couple of steps. "Don't worry."

"You should see about a job here," Yzak added when they all caught up to him. Rusty looked to Athrun who simply nodded. He could feel the unspoken message - do what you need to do. 

"Maybe," he said. The uneven ground was difficult to walk on. But another few rows and there they were. Athrun didn't hesitate to drop to the ground on his knees, clearing grass and a few stray leaves from Nicol's memorial. 

For a long moment, Rusty just stared at Miguel's stone. That's all it was - a stone, same as Nicol's. Up until now, he'd known about it. The stone. And he'd been able to think of it as just a stone with a name. No body beneath it - same as Nicol's. But Athrun knew Nicol was dead and Rusty...

Somehow it'd been easier to think of Miguel as just not being there, and just too busy to message. It was easy to imagine Miguel off with Yzak and Dearka on patrols and training new recruits. That orange GINN...

He didn't kneel as much as fall to his knees, cane abandoned as his first tears fell. 

"Wait up," Rusty whispered just before Athrun put an arm around him and he felt Dearka's hand on his back. "It'll be awhile, don't worry, but...

"Wait up."


End file.
